Anonymous reporting system

ABSTRACT

An anonymous reporting system ( 10 ) is provided for use in reporting and following up on incidents, accidents and the like. The system ( 10 ) is initiated by a system provider ( 12 ) on behalf of an institutional participant/client ( 14 ) for access by any number of individual users ( 16 ). The most common implementation is a web based interface ( 24 ) including a web site ( 27 ). The interface ( 24 ) includes an anonymizer ( 38 ) for safeguarding the identity of each individual user ( 16 ). The system ( 10 ) permits the user ( 16 ) to enter a report ( 28 ) and then assigns a random number identifier ( 74 ) associated with the report ( 28 ). The report ( 28 ) is forwarded to selected recipients ( 22 ) and to one or more administrators ( 32 ) associated with the participant/client ( 14 ). The administrators ( 32 ) may request follow up comments or send messages ( 64 ) associated with the report ( 28 ) by the access number ( 74 ) so that the user ( 16 ) may continue dialog, all while remaining totally anonymous. The system ( 10 ) is especially adapted for use in school or large company situations.

This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Application Ser.No. 60/337,036, filed Nov. 6, 2001.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates generally to systems for handling andarranging information, and more particularly to information handling forreceiving and categorizing anonymous reports in relationship to securityand safety issues.

BACKGROUND ART

The reporting of “incidents” is often of great value in recognizingpotential problems before the persons involved go further along the samepaths, too often with tragic or unfortunate results. Early recognitionof problem personalities or trends can provide opportunities forintervention and prevention of more serious activities. Incidents of allsorts occur frequently in social circumstances, such as in schools orthe workplace, where stress can lead to escalation, and escalation canlead to violence. The problems relate to groups which include three ofthe largest segments of the population; children attending school fromage five through eighteen, students attending secondary school and thoseemployed. The latest U.S. census estimates that 73 million Americans arein school and 134 million are in the workplace. Those in charge ofsecurity and the well being of the persons in these situations oftenhave a “need to know” about incidents which might seem minor, but can bethe harbinger of events of greater consequence.

Difficulties occur in the handling of report and in encouragingobservers to make the incidents known to those in authority, however.These difficulties arise in areas of collating and correlating theincidents and in maintaining secrecy and the privacy of the personsinvolved, whether they are the perpetrators or the witnesses. There isfrequently a fear factor involved among witnesses, as well as a generalreluctance to get involved or to be seen as a “snitch” or troublemaker.Overcoming obstacles to reporting incidents, and providing a structurefor discrete and efficient handling of reports is accordingly a matterfor concern.

A major concern in modern society deals with these incidents, especiallyin light of trends of violence in the workplace and educationalinstitutions. Today, violence, including sexual assault and harassment,is so prevalent in the workplace that, in many organizations it hasbecome an accepted fact of life.

The National Center for Victims of Crime reported 709 homicides in theworkplace during 1998 and 13 million workers say they are concernedabout the behavior of a coworker they think could become violent.Twenty-five percent of workers said their company offered training onworkplace violence, sixty-five percent said theirs did not, and ninepercent said they did not know if work had offered any training or help.Nine percent of workers reported an assault or other violent act intheir workplace in the past year, and eighteen percent reported a threator verbal intimidation, three out of every four say they are getting noguidance on how to prevent violence or how to recognize the dangers ofviolence [National Center for Victims of Crime, 1999].

These astounding figures suggest that more than 12 million acts ofviolence and 24 million threats or verbal intimidations occur each year[US Department of Education and Justice, 1998]. Only 25 percent of thecompanies surveyed have begun, in some way to address violence at work[Business Controls, Inc., What Every Employer Should Know AboutWorkplace Violence, 2000]. While many companies have begun to recognizethe need to address the potential for violence, it is evident that theyare looking for a starting point. The inventor, Eugene F. Ferraro, CPP,CFE, is a pioneer in developing methods to address violence in theworkplace. Over the last ten years Mr. Ferraro has developed thetraining programs and protocols to recognize and address the potentialfor violence in the workplace. Almost as an after thought others withinthe Security Industry saw the opportunity to establish anonymousemployee “hotlines”. Most of them were established without thought as towho might use them and how they would be used. Mr. Ferraro took a stepback, analyzed the effectiveness of what have come to be labeled “snitchlines” and developed a new concept and a new standard. After years ofresearch he developed an anonymous incident reporting service that iseasy to use, reliable and completely confidential.

The threat to students and young people is not new. Throughout 1997,students age 12 through 18 were victims of about 202,000 serious violentcrimes at school (i.e. rape, sexual assault, robbery, and aggravatedassault). This same group was also victimized by 898,000 less violentcrimes at school. While the data reported for 1998 by 481 four-yearcolleges and universities indicate that 1,240 forcible sex offenses, 159non-forcible sex offenses, 1,068 robberies, 2,267 aggravated assaults,13,745 burglaries, 4,160 motor vehicle thefts, 539 arsons, 170 hatecrimes, one manslaughter, and 20 murder incidents occurred on campuseswith more than 5,000 students [Chronicle of Higher Education, 2000].

The problem for students attending primary schools could even begreater:

-   -   1. In 1996, students K-12 were the victims of approximately 3        million thefts or violent crimes at school.    -   2. Every hour, more than 2000 students and 40 teachers are        attacked while on school property.    -   3. On any given school day in this country an estimated 200,000        students carry a gun to school.    -   4. Over 200,000 students don't go to school every school day        because of fear of being bullied [U.S. Department of Education        and Justice, Annual Report on School Safety, 1998].

The study and research by Dr. Kelly Zinna reveals:

-   -   1. School children of all ages have clear concerns about their        safety at school.    -   2. In almost every case of schoolplace violence, someone knew of        the threat before violence erupted.    -   3. School children and college students are not afraid to become        involved and report threats if they can remain anonymous.    -   4. Schoolplace anonymous incident reporting systems are an        essential component to any meaningful schoolplace safety program        [K. Zinna, After Columbine, Spectra Publishing, 1999 and Excel        Communications 2000].

As such, the need for services relating to incident reporting andcorrelation could not be greater. Everyone is at risk and no one feelssafe. Unfortunately however, educators, teachers and employers haveresponded by calling for more guards, locks and cameras. It is only amatter of time until the value of anonymous incident reporting systemswill be fully recognized.

In light of the great need for finding ways to obtain and correlateinformation on preliminary incidents, as a tool for preventing violenceand harassment, and the general lack of success in overcoming these bymere security presence alone, there exists an opportunity to refine andimprove the methods. In particular, methods for encouraging greaterparticipation in reporting, and creating a greater degree of witnessconfidence and safety is needed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide analways available (24/7) system for reporting incidents of significanceto particularly designated recipients.

Another object of the invention is to provide a system adapted forspecified use, such as school or workplace safety and to provide simpleto use and anonymous means persons to report and provide information onevents and incidents relevant to that use.

Still another object of the invention is to provide input means whichare comfortable for the user, allowing the user to provide input withoutfear of reprisals or of greater involvement than desired, or even toremain completely anonymous, if desired.

Briefly, a preferred embodiment of the present invention is a method ofproviding people with an anonymous means to report incidents of concernand to communicate when desired. Further once incidents are reported thesystem provides a structure for correlating and using the previousreports. In addition, when a “witness” or User is established in thesystem, the structure is provided to augment previous reports, add newsubmissions and, to a limited degree, observe the results of previoussubmissions. The delivery of that service is made both by telephone andthe Internet.

In operation of the system, a subscriber, the institution desiring useof the system for security purposes, arranges for establishment of anincident reporting system by the system provider. The subscriberpublicizes the existence of the reporting system to its constituency andpublishes the methods by which the constituents may report incidents,typically including telephone numbers and Internet contact addresses.The subscriber then requests that the incidents be reported using thesystem in, if desired, a fully anonymous manner. The provider thenreceives and collates the information and provides reports to thesubscriber.

A significant aspect of they system is an “anonymizer” which insures theconfidentiality of both the reporting person and the content of thereport, within limitations. The anonymizer allows the reporting person(witness/User) to establish one or more anonymous accounts under whichreports, and follow ups of reports may be made. These accounts may alsofunction as personas allowing queries and other communications relatingto following up.

The same overall system allows communications by witnesses, subscribersand system providers, each with separate access capabilities and outputoptions, and provides an interface structure and overall frameworkleading to organized and safe handling of the information and identitiesof the participants.

An advantage of the present invention is that it utilizes communicationtechnologies which are easy to use and are stable.

Another advantage of the present invention is that it uses the telephoneand the Internet to allow users to communicate anonymously and safely.

A further advantage of the invention is that it maintains completeconfidentiality of those reporting incidents by utilizing techniques forgenerating unique anonymous tags for use by individuals.

Still another advantage of the invention is that it categorizesinformation and provides reporting to subscribers in an inexpensive anduseful form.

A still further advantage of the invention is that users are permittedto provide follow up information on an incident and to tie suchinformation in with previous reports.

Yet another advantage of the invention is the anonymous nature of thereports may be publicized within the constituencies, thus increasingconfidence in the confidentiality and encouraging participation.

These and other objects and advantages of the present invention willbecome clear to those skilled in the art in view of the description ofthe best presently known mode of carrying out the invention and theindustrial applicability of the preferred embodiment as described hereinand as illustrated in the several figures of the drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 (including FIGS. 1A and 1B) is a schematic illustration showingthe operation of the system in a flow chart style.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

The present invention is an anonymous incident reporting andcommunications system 10 for schools, businesses, public institutionsand governmental agencies. The system 10 involves services coordinatedby a system provider 12 and utilized by a variety of institutionalparticipants 14 and individual constituent users 16. The system 10allows participants 16 to anonymously and easily report threats ofviolence, harassment, sexual misconduct, discrimination, dishonesty orother concerns in a timely and safe manner via telephone 18 or theInternet 20. Its services enable participants 14 to anonymously generateconfidential reports and instantly transmit them to a pre-designatedrecipient 22 in the subscriber organization or institution and to anyoneelse of the participant's choosing. The interface 24 is simple,intuitive and user-friendly. The experience is efficient, rewarding andsafe.

In addition to incident reporting, users (“User(s)”) 16 can also reportworkplace accidents, pass along suggestions and obtain safetyinformation.

The general operation of the system 10 is shown in a flow chart mannerin the illustration of FIG. 1 (shown as divided into FIGS. 1A and 1B forpresentation purposes. This illustration shows the operation of thesystem 10 in response to an access request 26 by any user 14. The accessrequest may be direct, as in an online electronic access, or indirect,where a telephone report is provided and then, either concurrently orsubsequently entered into the system 10 by personnel of the systemprovider 12. The interface 24 with the system 10, whether directly ordelayed (as in the case of telephone communication, is through the website 27 which is provided by the System Provider 12. One of more websites 27 may be provided, with each being customized to the requirementsof the particular institutional participant(s) 14.

As is illustrated in the flow chart, upon submission of a report 28(regardless of type), Users 16 are immediately issued a confidentialaccess number (password) 30. The access number 30 allows the User 16 toanonymously follow up on his or her report 28 at a later date, andprovide additional information or assist further if necessary. Services,whether accessed via telephone 18 or the Internet 20 are available toUsers 16 at any time of day or night, seven days a week.

The most complex aspect of the service is the feature-rich Internet andWeb site component 27. FIG. 1 illustrates in some detail how the userinterfaces 24 with the Web site 27 through the Internet 20 and how theinformation provided is managed and disseminated. The process isengineered to allow anonymous and encrypted communications between theUser 16 and a pre-assigned administrator (“the Administrator”) 32. TheAdministrator 32 will typically be associated with the system provider12 and may administer the service for a variety of separately maintainedservices for institutional participants 14. The User 16 is permitted tocreate, edit and print reports 28, as well as respond to inquiries 34posted by the Administrator 32. The Administrator 32 may browse, read,view and print those reports 28. A back-office application 36 allows theAdministrator 32 to use reports 28 to conduct statistical analysis,create charts and print custom reports.

The system 10 of the present invention involves numerous uniquefeatures, one of the most significant of which is the “anonymizer” 38.The anonymizer 38 operates as follows: Upon entering the site 27, theUser 16 is immediately anonymized. All identifying information isrendered unintelligible and is immediately purged when the User leavesthe site. The pop-up message “YOU ARE NOW COMPLETELY ANONYMOUS” 40appears as soon as the User accesses a HOME PAGE 42 opening, which isthe entry to the web site 27 and the system 10. The User 16 clicks itaway by clicking “OK.” The User 16 will remain anonymous until he leavesthe site. Upon anonymization, a small icon 44 (shield with the letter“A” in it) will appear in the browser tool tray of the User. The icon 44will remain visible as long as the anonymization is in effect.

From the HOME PAGE 42, the User 16 makes a choice by selecting “CheckMessages” 46, “Make an Incident Report” 48 or “Make an Accident Report”50. In each case an SSL (Secure Socket Layer) encryption protocol 52 isexecuted. The User 16 will be alerted to such by a message window andthe appearance of a small padlock icon 54 appearing in the tool tray oftheir browser. Double-clicking this icon 54 will reveal the digitalcertificate assigned, confirming encryption. SSL encryption serviceswill be provided for the site by a commerce vendor, such as Verisign.

Regardless of the nature of the report indicated, which will dependentirely on the situation, report data 56 of indefinite length may thenbe entered. The system 10 provides a word processor data entry screen 58which allows the User 16 to enter and edit, in a report form 59,whatever sort of information is desired. The word processor screen 58remains open until the User 16 has determined that the data entry iscomplete and clicks it closed. Any information or report provided by theUser 16 while SSL is enabled will be encrypted until notified otherwise.When the User 16 leaves a secured portion of the site, encryption willconclude and the padlock icon 54 will disappear from the tool bar.

Administrative rights will be granted to designated client participants(usually security personnel associated with the subscriber participants14). These participants will be a part of the group calledAdministrators 32. Administrators 32 will be provided an “Access Code”and password 30. Upon verification against a database, Administrators 32may view reports created by their associated Users (e.g. their employeesor students).

Reports 28 created by Users 16 will be stored in a relational database(see below for how reports are created). Administrators 32 may browse,read, view and print reports 28. The back-office application 36 allowsthem to conduct statistical analysis, create charts and print customreports for their own purposes.

A Web Master 60, who will typically be a person associated with andcontrolled by the system provider 12 will have rights to perform anyAdministrator function, assign passwords and access codes, as well aspost messages in response to User reports. Only the Web Master 60, adesignated Administrator 32 and the report's author (the specific User16 who generated the particular report 28) will be permitted to viewprior reports and Web Master postings.

A “message flag” 62 will identify reports 28 within the database withmessages 64 posted by the Web Master 60. The object is to allow the Userand the Web Master to have electronic dialogue (much like email) whereboth remain anonymous. When the User 16 next logs on they will be ableto select the “Check Messages” 46 box on the HOMEPAGE 42 and will havean opportunity to review and reply to the messages 64 from the WebMaster 60.

An optional feature, depending on the desires of the subscriberparticipant 14, relates to a method for filtering “offensive language”as defined for the particular purpose. In this feature, known as anoffensive language filter 66 a spell-check module 68 will detectoffensive words if used by the User 16 while completing the form andfilling fields in the report form 59. The User 16 will be warned of suchand the offending language will be X'ed out, but not deleted. A warningmessage box 70 will pop up, warning the User 16 not to use offensivelanguage again. A database will be used to spell-check and identifyoffensive language for this purpose. It is recognized that this featurewill need to permit the use of such language in quoting the details ofincidents and the like, and will be flexible to allow limited usage ofthe forbidden terms, in the proper context.

At the end of the form 59, the User 16 is offered the opportunity toemail the report to anyone of his choice. Regardless of the choice, thereport 28 will also be distributed to predetermined designatedrecipients identified by the client/subscriber 14.

The User 16 is then prompted to press a “Get Access Number” button 72 inorder to obtain a user and report specific access number 74. In doingso, a random number generating method 76 produces a unique nine-digitaccess number which becomes the User access number 74 associated withthe report 28. The User 16 is instructed to manually record this.Simultaneously, the user access number 74 is coupled to the report 28and saved in a database. The User 16 is prompted to submit the report 28and in doing so, is shown an non-editable rendition of the report andreminded again of his/her user access number 74. The User 16 is thenprovided the option to “Submit Report” or “Redo” 78. Selection of “Redo”restarts the process.

Submission of the report 28 immediately results in the system 10emailing the report to the Web Master 60 and any designated recipient 22(selected system provider managers or report reviewers). The report 28is also bounced against a “Fuzzy Database” 80 in an effort to identifythe client Administrator or client-designated recipient. Because the WebSite 27 is open and entry is not password protected, anyone withInternet access can enter the site and create/submit a report 28. Assuch, the User 16 cannot be provided pull-down lists to identify andselect her/his employer or school because of confidentiality concerns.Additionally, any typographical error or misspelling on the part of theUser 16 may make the identity of the corresponding client 14 impossibleto determine electronically. The “Fuzzy Database” 80 containingpermutations of the names of subscriber clients 14 will be used to linkthe User's report 28 to the proper client 14. Once linkage isaccomplished, the report 28 will be emailed to the pre-designated clientrecipient 22. If no match is found the report 28 is forwarded to adefault Administrator 32 who determines future handling.

The user access number 74 created in the process will allow the WebMaster 60 to post messages 64 to a desired report 28′. In turn, Usersmay later return to the site and retrieve those messages 64 byidentifying himself/herself only with the user access number 74. Uponre-entry to the site 27, a User 16 retrieving messages may append anexisting report 28′ or create a new one 28″. A new report 28″ willgenerate a new user access number 74′.

Upon leaving the site the User will offered the option of placing an“Auto-shortcut” 82 to the site 27 on her/his desktop and/or in his/hertool tray. Corporate subscriber clients 14 will be provided a smallshortcut application 84 which they can install or download onto allcorporate workstations, which will place the “Auto-shortcut” 82 on thedesktop and/or in the tool tray.

In addition to the above mentioned examples, various other modificationsand alterations of the anonymous incident reporting system 10 may bemade without departing from the invention. Accordingly, the abovedisclosure is not to be considered as limiting and the appended claimsare to be interpreted as encompassing the entire spirit and scope of theinvention.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

As described above, the present invention is utilized in the context ofsafety, security and personnel management applications, particularly inschools and the workplace. The system 10 is adapted to be accessible toany interested party with access to provided telephone 18 numbers or websites 27. Potential subscriber clients 14 will typically beinstitutions, either academic or corporate with concerns aboutcontrolling incidents which may presage more serious future conduct.

The operation of the system 10 is as shown in the drawing and describedabove.

For the above, and other, reasons, it is expected that the anonymousreporting system 10 of the present invention will have widespreadindustrial applicability. Therefore, it is expected that the commercialutility of the present invention will be extensive and long lasting.

I claim:
 1. In a computing system with a web site operating on acomputer, a computer-implemented method for facilitating anonymousreporting of events and incidents comprising: assigning, by a computer,an access code and password to a group of administrators that includes agroup of client participants; saving, by the computer, the access codeand password; receiving, at a web-based interface, content; generating,by the computer, a report using the content; storing the report in afirst relational database; assigning, by the computer, a random numberidentifier to the report; purging, by the computer, the content from thefirst relational database; storing, by the computer, the report and therandom number identifier in a second relational database; routing, bythe computer, the report to a computer of a designated subscriber clientof the group of client participants using a fuzzy algorithm; receiving,by the computer, a request for the report, the request including therandom number identifier; and sending the report, using the computer, inresponse to the request.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising,receiving a user selection of a recipient to receive the report.
 3. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the random number identifier is unique to thereport.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the fuzzy algorithm isconfigured to route the report using portions of the content havingtypographical errors.
 5. The method of claim 1, further comprisingreceiving, at the web-based interface, a selection of a type of report.6. A computer-implemented method comprising: assigning, by a computer,an access code and password to a group of administrators that includes agroup of client participants; saving, by the computer, the access codeand password; receiving, at a web-based interface, content; generating,by the computer, a report using the content; storing the report in afirst relational database; assigning, by the computer, a random numberidentifier to the report; purging, by the computer, the content from thefirst relational database; storing, by the computer, the report and therandom number identifier in a second relational database; routing, bythe computer, the report to a computer of a designated subscriber clientof the group of client participants using a fuzzy algorithm; receiving,by the computer, a request for the report, the request including theaccess code and password; and sending, by the computer, the report inresponse to the request.
 7. The method of claim 6, further comprising,receiving, at the web-based interface, a selection of a type of report.8. The method of claim 6, wherein the random number identifier is uniqueto the report.
 9. The method of claim 6, wherein the fuzzy algorithm isconfigured to route the report using portions of the content havingtypographical errors.
 10. The method of claim 6, further comprisingreceiving, at the web-based interface, a selection of a type of report.